ON GOLF.

Pressure-cooked

Admittedly nervous, Sorenstam fails in quest to make cut

FT. WORTH — It would have been interesting to see how Annika Sorenstam would have played at the Colonial without any of the incredible pressure or scrutiny she faced this week.

How would she have done if she'd sneaked into the field as a low-profile sponsor exemption named Arnold Soren? She could have sported a fake mustache, and nobody would have been the wiser.

If Sorenstam didn't have to carry the weight of the world in her bag, she might have provided a more accurate barometer of how the LPGA's top player could fare on the PGA Tour.

Ultimately, it was too much to ask Sorenstam, or any player, to deliver under such conditions. It got the best of her Friday.

Trying desperately to make the cut, Sorenstam slipped to a 74 during the second round at Colonial Country Club. She finished at 5-over par, four strokes over the cut line of 1 over.

Kenny Perry and Dan Forsman shared the lead at 8 under, while big names such Tom Lehman and Sergio Garcia joined Sorenstam in failing to advance to the weekend. But nobody questioned whether they could play on the PGA Tour.

Obviously, there will be some questions about Sorenstam's ability to play at this level. But nobody should doubt her heart.

The pressure she faced was overwhelming. It was the Masters and U.S. Open combined. She walked such a fine line, it seemed every putt was like a 4-footer to halve a hole in the Ryder Cup.

Sorenstam said she wasn't "tough enough to handle it." She couldn't have been more wrong.

Name a player who wouldn't have been wobbly in this situation. Maybe Ben Hogan, who won five times on this course, but that's about it.

"I think it was too much pressure to put on one person in two rounds of golf," said Dean Wilson, who played with Sorenstam on Thursday and Friday. "What a tough day for her. We had double the pressure, double the people out here. Everyone's yelling at every corner she turned. It was just too tough for anyone."

Pia Nilsson, Sorenstam's first coach in Sweden, also believed her pupil was too hard on herself. She was amazed Sorenstam came through so well during a near flawless ball-striking round Thursday.

"She's a human being, and human beings react to pressure," Nilsson said. "What she did [Thursday] . . . I knew she could do it, but I didn't believe it until I saw it."

Sorenstam said she noticed the pressure most in her short game. She left a few chips short and then struggled with her distance on lag putts.

"That's the way I react when I'm nervous," Sorenstam said. "I lose feel in my hands. I have hit thousands of putts, thousands of chips. I know how I react. You would think I would learn from that."

The only way you learn is by doing it. Sorenstam took her shot.

Sorenstam's play confirmed she is a terrific talent, but she always will be hard-pressed to make a cut at a PGA Tour event.

She is more than capable of making pars, but doesn't seem able to make enough birdies to compensate for the inevitable bogeys. And she doesn't appear to have the short game around the greens to turn potential bogeys into up-and-down pars.

She was forced to grind through the course as if it were set up like a U.S. Open track. The rest of the field, meanwhile, was on cruise control as always.

But give her credit for trying. It certainly made the Colonial, which has lost star power in recent years, much more interesting. Without Sorenstam, the energy level will be down several thousand watts during the weekend.

Sorenstam put on a compelling show. She earned the respect of her peers, both men and women players, and countless new fans.

Sorenstam didn't make the cut, but she won anyway. Golf did too.

Shot by shot

FRONT NINE

1. Par 5, 565 yards: She shows immediately that she isn't on top of her game by knocking a 9-iron into the trap on her third shot. She manages to get up and down for par.

2. Par 4, 400 yards: She posts her only birdie of the day. She hits a 9-iron to 8 feet and then makes the putt.

3. Par 4, 476 yards: She has to scramble again when her 7-wood from 185 yards lands in the right trap. She gets up and down, making a 5-footer for par.

4. Par 3, 246 yards: Once again, the tee was up. From 217 yards, she knocks a 7-wood to 15 feet. But she misses the birdie putt.

5. Par 4, 470 yards: She actually makes a good bogey. Her drive clips the trees and barely lands in-bounds. After pitching out, she hits two bad approach shots, forcing her to make a 14-footer to save bogey.

6. Par 4, 393 yards: After missing the green, her chipping problems cost her when she comes up 15 feet short. She misses the par putt.

7. Par 4, 427 yards: She misses yet another green with a 6-iron approach. But she gets up and down for par.

8. Par 3, 192 yards: She didn't get enough juice on her tee shot, leaving herself 58 feet. She three-putted from there for bogey.

9. Par 4, 402 yards: She hits a nice 8-iron to 34 feet. Then she barely misses the birdie putt.

BACK NINE

10. Par 4, 404 yards: She gets on the green in regulation, but her putting fails again. From 23 feet, she three-putts for bogey.